Cross-border town naming


Cross-border town naming occurs where towns or villages with the same or equivalent names are divided between two different countries. This does not necessarily imply that those towns or villages are located in geographic proximity or that they are located near a current border. Reasons for this taking place may include the following:
  • The town or village existed before the border or even before the modern concept of a border. The border was added later, dividing a community.
  • A community on one side of a border grows up to service the border and then takes the name of the adjacent community on the other side of the border.
  • Communities grow up on both sides of the border to service the border, taking the name of the border crossing.
Most places are in Europe, but there are also some examples in Africa, Asia and the Americas. In Europe, until the first half of the 20th century and again since the Schengen Agreement in the late 20th century, such divisions could be mostly ignored by the inhabitants.

Examples

Note that this list includes only places with similar names that are in some way connected across modern-day international borders. Towns that have the same name but bear no relationship to each other are also very common but not particularly notable.

North America

Towns and cities listed have names of a common origin across an international boundary; matching pairs across provincial or state boundaries are common but are not listed here.
Cross-border townCountries
Beebe Plain, Quebec and Beebe Plain, VermontUnited States